Wonder Woman: Anschluss '77
"Anschluss '77" is the second episode of season two of the superhero action series Wonder Woman and the sixteenth episode of the series overall. It was directed by Alan Crosland with a teleplay written by Dallas L. Barnes. It first aired on CBS on Friday, September 23rd, 1977 at 8:00 pm. In this episode, Diana Prince and the Inter-Agency Defense Command have to investigate fringe elements of the old Nazi party that are active in South America. Their objective? Cloning Hitler, of course! Synopsis Inter Agency Defense Command Headquarters - Washington, D.C. Steve shows Diana a copy of "Tempo" magazine which features Wonder Woman on the cover. Steve, Diana and Joe Atkinson go to receive instructions from the President for their next mission. A former high ranking Nazi Intelligence Officer, Fritz Gerlich, is living in San Rafael, Cordova, and using this town as a base for what the Nazis are calling, by code name, "Anschluss '77." Eager and curious to find out why Gerlich has picked a dusty, isolated town, Major Steve Trevor and his assistant Diana Prince - Wonder Woman in disguise are sent to South America to investigate. San Rafael, the capitol of Cordova, a dusty and isolated little community. As Diana and Steve arrive, they're supposed to meet Captain Gaitan but he's not there. While Diana keeps an eye on the luggage, Steve goes in search of Medina, but the Nazis are observing, a thief steals Steve's wallet. Diana quickly whirls into Wonder Woman and saves Steve though the thugs escape. Steve is surprised to see Wonder Woman in South America. It seems that Steve have pulled a muscle in his shoulder and Wonder Woman easily cures him by pressuring her fingers. She explains it's a principle similar to acupuncture that she learned centuries ago from a Chinese doctor. Gerlich is surprised by the fact of Wonder Woman's appearance, and decides that Diana must be and important American agent and the she must be aware of Steve's acts. Meanwhile Ste and Diana meet Captain Gaitan and discuss about what happened earlier. Diana shows Gaitan an old photo of Gerlich from World War II, and Gaitan admits he has seen him a couple of times outside of Dr. Stern's house. Steve and Diana investigate in Dr. Stern's house and they find some books and documentation about a medical treatise about cellular mutation or cloning. Meanwhile the Nazis have dispatched agents to kidnap Diana at Dr. Stern's house. Taken to an abandoned mine shaft, Diana is questioned about her purpose for being in San Rafael. Refusing to answer, Gerlich orders Diana's hands and feet bound and they tie her to a beam. Another rope wrapped around her hand cuffs leads to sticks of dynamite placed on a ledge just above her head. As Gerlich and his henchmen leave, they light the fuse with the warning that it is a two-minute fuse. Perhaps this way she will talk... Wonder Woman realizes she must use all her power and strength to break loose. After attempting and failing to remove the fuse with her teeth, she changes her tactics -breaks loose and spins into Wonder Woman. She grabs the sticks of dynamite leaves them further into the mine shaft and after the explosion, Gerlich assumes she is dead. He immediately leaves for a waiting helicopter with Wonder Woman in pursuit. As the helicopter rises, Wonder Woman leaps and grabs the struts beneath the helicopter. She is carried across the countryside and as the helicopter descends, she drops off and lands near the Nazi's secret base at Campo Grande. As Diana again, she seeks out Steve and together they drive to Campo Grande. She tells Steve that she barely left before the explosion and tells him that she's been able to see them leaving in a helicopter heading to Campo Grande. She also tells Steve that she saw Gerlich with two legs and standing in his own two feet. Back at Campo Grande, Gerlich and Köenig welcome Johan Rogel and Karl Strasser who will be assisting Dr. Heinrich Von Klemper, who has perfected a process called cloning and has plans to make a clone of Adolph Hitler for the 39th anniversary of the Austrian anschluss. It seems that Dr. Von Kempler has been working on the process since 1945 which basically is an acceleration of the healing process through cellular re-genesis. Soon after Von Klemper shows them the process and he successfully clones der fuehrer himself! Steve and Diana arrive at Campo Grande and they find concrete bunkers, tanks, armored cars and watch the training of a firing range with Brown shirts. Now they get a better idea of what Anschluss '77 may be about. While Steve will try to infiltrate Diana goes back to call Gaitan for help. On her way back to rejoin Steve she finds a tank on her way that shoots at her. She quickly runs into a spot and whirls into Wonder Woman and stops the tank. Posing as a Nazi agent Steve is surprised to see the fuehrer alive as is Wonder Woman, who is watching nearby. Arriving at the lab, Steve, in Nazi uniform, relieves the guard. Entering the lab, they overpower Dr. Stern, who is in fact Dr. Heinrich Von Kempler. Wonder Woman interrogates him and he reveals that the cloning process isn't finished yet, he must have additional treatments for complete stabilization of the cellular structure. The three of them wait for Adolph Hitler to arrive. As soon as he does, Wonder Woman posing as the doctor's new assistant, racing against time, activates the reversal process and very slowly Hitler's body fades away and "Anschluss '77" is ended. The following day, back in Washington D.C. Steve and Diana make a full report about their mission, though Joe Atkinson is sort of skeptical about what happened. Steve and Diana explain to Joe Atkinson that it was thank to Wonder Woman that the cloning of Hitler was reverted, the laboratory destroyed and Anschluss '77 smashed. "It's too bad that you weren't there to witness this magical transformation, Diana", says Joe Atkinson. And Diana thinks: "But Wonder Woman was". Cast Principal Cast Guest Stars Co-Starring Featuring Notes & Trivia * * Wonder Woman is based on characters created by Charles Moulton. It was developed for television by Stanley Ralph Ross. * Director Alan Crosland, Jr. is credited as Alan Crosland in this episode. * Actor Norman Burton is credited as Normann Burton in this episode. * This is the fourth episode of Wonder Woman directed by Alan Crosland. It is his second episode from season two of the series. He previously directed "The Return of Wonder Woman". * This is the only episode of Wonder Woman written by Dallas L. Barnes. Allusions * The title of this episode is taken from "Anschluss Österreichs", which was the Nazi propaganda term for the annexation of Austria into Nazi Germany in March, 1938. * Adolf Hitler was the leader of the Nazi party in Germany during the 1940s and served as chancellor from 1933 until his death in 1945. * Nazi is a term referring to the National Socialist German Workers' Party, which was a political party that was established in 1920. By the mid 1930s up until 1945, it was the dominant authoritative body in Germany and was led by Adolf Hitler. * World War II is an armed military conflict that involved numerous nations across the globe, that took place 1939 and 1945. It involved the cooperative efforts of the Axis Powers (Germany, Italy, Japan) against those of the Allies, which consisted of the United Kingdom, France, Poland, and eventually the United States. Quotes * Steve Trevor: Wonder Woman, what are you doing in South America? * Wonder Woman: I think my reasons for being here are pretty much the same as yours. Are you all right? * Steve Trevor: Oh yeah, except for my whole body. .... * Wonder Woman: It took me a while to get back but I guess I was... lucky. * Steve Trevor: You were lucky for the both of us. .... * Joe Atkinson: So he was cloned and then, eh, un-cloned. * Steve Trevor: That's it. * Joe Atkinson: And Wonder Woman helped you to find the secret Nazi base. * Steve Trevor: Eh, she was even there for the un-cloning, but by that time, she'd changed into a medical technician. * Diana Prince: And subsequently destroyed the lab. * Joe Atkinson: Well, it's your report, not mine. See also External Links * Category:1977/Episodes Category:Episodes with crew categories Category:Verified